I remember the day that God called me to this. He told me to write about my journey…to share my testimony…so that others could gain hope in Him. But, I was apprehensive. I was nervous, because I had never done anything like this before…
“You want me to write, God? How? I don’t know how to do this… I am unqualified…I don’t have what it takes.”
And I remember his response to me. He said, “I will be with you, and I will show you what to do.”
So, I obeyed. I did something that I thought was impossible. I wrote a blog. And to my surprise, it was pretty amazing. I felt accomplished the day that I published it. I felt fulfilled, because I did what God asked me to do. But then, He gave me another assignment. He told me to write a blog every week.
“What do you mean every week, God? I could barely write one blog. How can I write one every week? How would I come up with the content? I don’t even have enough things to say…I don’t have enough experiences to share.”
Again, God spoke to me. He said, “I enabled you to write one blog, and I will enable you to write many more.”
So, apprehensively, I continued to write. To this day, I have written over one hundred and fifty blogs, and I still feel unqualified…I still feel like I have no idea what I am doing. It’s crazy because after three years of writing I should be somewhat confident in the skills that I’ve gained, but I am not.
Why?
Because there is no way I can do any of this without the presence of the Holy Spirit…
He speaks his truth over me. He shows me how his word relates to my life. He enables me to put his messages into writing. And when I am stuck, he shows me which way to go. When I don’t know what to say, He gives me the words to speak.
I do not do this in my own strength. I am enabled through His.
Then he said to me, “This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. (Zechariah 4:6 NLT)
God enables us to walk in purpose.
When He calls us, we won't have everything that we need. We won’t have the ability. We won’t have the strength. We won’t have the wisdom. We won’t have the talent. And this is by design.
God doesn’t want us to have it all.
He wants us to be at a disadvantage. He wants us to be at a deficit. He wants us to be weak..so that He can show his strength in our lives
Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. (2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT)
In Judges chapter 6, we see the perfect example of how God desires to show His strength through our weakness…
During this time of scripture, the Israelites were being oppressed by the Midianites, and the Lord called a man named Gideon to rescue them.
Let’s take a moment to read a portion of this story together. It is pretty lengthy, but I want you to see how intentional God was in making sure that Gideon’s army was at a disadvantage.
So Jerub-baal (that is, Gideon) and his army got up early and went as far as the spring of Harod. The armies of Midian were camped north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength. Therefore, tell the people, ‘Whoever is timid or afraid may leave this mountain and go home.’” So 22,000 of them went home, leaving only 10,000 who were willing to fight. But the Lord told Gideon, “There are still too many! Bring them down to the spring, and I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not.” When Gideon took his warriors down to the water, the Lord told him, “Divide the men into two groups. In one group put all those who cup water in their hands and lap it up with their tongues like dogs. In the other group put all those who kneel down and drink with their mouths in the stream.” Only 300 of the men drank from their hands. All the others got down on their knees and drank with their mouths in the stream. The Lord told Gideon, “With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Send all the others home.” (Judges 7:1-7 NLT)
The Lord wanted Gideon’s army at a disadvantage because He wanted His strength to shine through their weakness. And I believe that this is what He wants to do in our lives.
God wants His strength to shine through our weakness.
So, the next time we feel that we are at a disadvantage…the next time we feel weak, or unprepared, or unqualified….we must remember that God is being strategic and intentional in our lives.
God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies those He calls.
When God called Gideon, He did so knowing that Gideon was unqualified. He knew Gideon wasn’t strong enough. As we just discussed…God made sure of it.
Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!” (Judges 6:14 NLT)
God told Gideon to go with the strength that he had… and I believe that this is what He wants to say to us today.
God with the strength you have!
Sure, you aren’t good enough. Sure, you don’t have what it takes. But none of that matters because you have Him.
When you don’t have enough, He is more than enough.
He has the wisdom that you need. He has the strength that you need. He has the provision that you need. You don’t need to have it all together. Just have faith in Him…Have faith to step into the purpose that He has given you.
Don’t overthink it…step into your purpose. Don’t make excuses…step into purpose. Don’t worry about how it will work out…step into your purpose. If you will only trust in Him, you will experience the amazing promise that He has for you. Remember…you aren’t responsible for the outcome…God is. You are only responsible for your obedience. The Spirit of God will do the rest.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank you for loving me, and thank you for creating me for an amazing purpose. Today, I have been reminded that I am not alone, because you are with me. You are here to guide me along the path that you have for me. You are here to give me wisdom, courage, strength, provision, and protection. I don’t need to be confident in my own strength, I only need to be confident in yours. So Father, I have decided to follow you. I will obey your instructions. I will seek your guidance, and I will allow your strength to shine through me. I love you, Father. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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